Thirteen

Today my remarkable daughter has become a teenager. You only get 6 years to be one of those! I mean 7! I forgot about 19. Thus, today is the first of 2557 days in which she will be a teen.

She really didn't want to do anything other than go out to U-swirl, the self-serve frozen yogurt place, so that's all we'll be doing. Other than hanging out here and having cake and her choice of meals and opening presents. I worked it out so that she can have one present every hour, for 13 hours, today. 7 down, 6 to go! Each one is hidden and has a clue to find it.

The other day my big girl climbed up into my lap and curled up there like she used to do when she was little. I sat there, smelling her shampoo and feeling her arms around me, marveling at how only 13 years can turn a baby into a young woman. I appreciated the fact that my almost teenaged daughter would still cuddle with me, still come to me for mama-love.

She has feet almost as big as mine, she is almost as tall as me, and I regularly give her shirts that are just a little bit too small for me. She loves to laugh, she loves her sisters and her brother, she loves video games and going online, she loves her uncles, her grandma, her rats and cats. She's entering a new phase of her life. I can't wait to see how she continues to grow, to learn, and to discover her place in the world.

Happy birthday, beautiful amazing girl! I love you.